kirkt Posted October 31, 2004 Report Share Posted October 31, 2004 one of my dads mates gave me his old pc...just so i can use for typing and stuff (mainly for me putting my fanzine together), i hooked it all up and turned it on and it said "system disk error, please replace disk and press any key"....well what am i supposed to replace? i put a disc for windows 98 in but it just said the same thing...any ideas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HARRY Posted October 31, 2004 Report Share Posted October 31, 2004 Your hard drive could have been fried or corrupted before he gave it to you. It probably means you will have to invest in a new HDD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirkt Posted October 31, 2004 Author Report Share Posted October 31, 2004 wud that cost a lot then? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Posted October 31, 2004 Report Share Posted October 31, 2004 wud that cost a lot then?depends on what you get. You never know someone might donate an old one to you. If you just need it for typing and using word then a decrepid old drive from a box someone has lying in their loft would probably do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cowboy Dan Posted October 31, 2004 Report Share Posted October 31, 2004 Take the floppy disk out of the drive Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirkt Posted October 31, 2004 Author Report Share Posted October 31, 2004 nah there aint a floppy disk in it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HARRY Posted October 31, 2004 Report Share Posted October 31, 2004 If you dont require an incredible amount of disk space (100GB or above), then it should only cost about 10 quid at the most for a 15-20GB drive. I would sell you my old one, but my sister's pc is in desperate need of upgrading (her 1.62GB drive doesn't exactly hold much) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest onlynik Posted October 31, 2004 Report Share Posted October 31, 2004 You are about 40 for a new drive form any shop, I'd stay away from second ahnd drives, you never know when they are going to die, and in my experience they hardly ever last more than 4 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imprinted Posted October 31, 2004 Report Share Posted October 31, 2004 www.dabs.comwww.overclockers.co.ukwww.overclock.co.ukwww.scan.co.ukwww.novatech.co.uk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Charity Case Posted October 31, 2004 Report Share Posted October 31, 2004 Your hard drive could have been fried or corrupted before he gave it to you. It probably means you will have to invest in a new HDDJumping the gun?Check to make sure that the cd-rom drive is the first bootable drive in the bios Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HARRY Posted October 31, 2004 Report Share Posted October 31, 2004 It wouldn't say SYSTEM disk error for nothing now, would it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delboy Posted October 31, 2004 Report Share Posted October 31, 2004 same thing happened to me recently and it was indeed the hard disk being knackered and completely fried. just get a new hard drive and find someone to fit it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Charity Case Posted October 31, 2004 Report Share Posted October 31, 2004 It wouldn't say SYSTEM disk error for nothing now' date=' would it?[/quote']way back when... in the early 90s... 1994 to be exact... system disk could mean a floppy disk with system files on it... then again i was only in 4th year Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris#2 Posted November 1, 2004 Report Share Posted November 1, 2004 It wouldn't say SYSTEM disk error for nothing now' date=' would it?[/quote']It could, actually.It could mean that the disk has been completely wiped before it was given away... this error will occur if there's no OS to boot into.As suggested, make sure that the CD-ROM drive is listed before the HDD in the boot device order (found in the BIOS). Alternatively, use another computer to make a boot disk on a floppy and install windows 98 that way.If you find that you can't install, after all that, then I'd look at getting a new HDD. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Tristen Posted November 1, 2004 Report Share Posted November 1, 2004 I agree chances are its to do with the boot orders in the BIOS. Also check the obvious internal stuff such as drives being plugged in, cables being in working order etc. THEN if your certain its nothing setting wise BORROW someone else hard drive and try that (or just get an old one... I know I've got a few ranging from about 6gb - 20gb sitting around, unfortunately not in Aberdeen or I'd let you have one.) THEN if you prove the fault to your own drive think about replacing it.Never throw money at a computer related problem until you've tried all the free solutions as you'll normally find one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirkt Posted November 1, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2004 i think its likely that it was wiped clean rather than the hard disk being fucked so ill try that. thanks peeps Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Ascension Posted November 1, 2004 Report Share Posted November 1, 2004 well i would hedge my bets on it having Nothing bootable from the hard drive (e.g Windows not yet installed), nothing bootable from floopy and nothing bootable from CD (e.g. Windows install CD) so it is giving this error saying, gimme a fucking disk to boot from you twat!You need to install windows, first go into the BIOS setup when the puter first boots and set the boot order to CD-ROM before floppy then HDD.On a side note, I believe that not all versions of the Windows 98 CD are bootable - ie if you have done all of the above and have no joy, it means you won't be able to install that version of Windows this way. Get a bootable version of the CD...-Doc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HARRY Posted November 1, 2004 Report Share Posted November 1, 2004 Should it be a wise idea to upgrade the OS to 2000 at this time, or is this not deemed necessary? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Tristen Posted November 1, 2004 Report Share Posted November 1, 2004 Depends how old the PC is really... I get the impression from the above that its a fairly old thing. I used to have A PIII 500mhz and that ran XP/2000/ME just fine, but any lower would be pushing it a bit.On another note any reason for 2000 over XP? All my experiences with it have been godaweful, but there are others who sware by it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HARRY Posted November 1, 2004 Report Share Posted November 1, 2004 Basically, I just prefer the GUI, the features aren't as dumbed down as XP, and it feels a less speed consuming OS. That's probably not true, but I just find XP too retarded for my liking. I also think that my current hardware runs most efficient with Windows 2000 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Ascension Posted November 10, 2004 Report Share Posted November 10, 2004 you could do, but if you were doing that you might aswell just upgrade to XP with one stipulation - RAM.If you have 128Mb or above, go go go! Anything less and forget about XP, your PC will die and never speak to you again.Luckily RAM is cheaper than taking a shit in a phonebox these days ( dont ask how ) and so find out what type of RAM you have installed already...That includes, size in Mb, speed in Mhz (ie 800Mhz) and type (eg PC2700, etc) the type is VERY important to ensure compatability with the motherboard and that you don't spend more than you need.If you have two different types, the RAM can only run at the slowest chip's speed. www.scan.co.uk or www.dabs.com might be worth a look... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HARRY Posted November 10, 2004 Report Share Posted November 10, 2004 you could do' date=' but if you were doing that you might aswell just upgrade to XP with one stipulation - RAM.If you have 128Mb or above, go go go! Anything less and forget about XP, your PC will die and never speak to you again.Luckily RAM is cheaper than taking a shit in a phonebox these days ( dont ask how ) and so find out what type of RAM you have installed already...That includes, size in Mb, speed in Mhz (ie 800Mhz) and type (eg PC2700, etc) the type is VERY important to ensure compatability with the motherboard and that you don't spend more than you need.If you have two different types, the RAM can only run at the slowest chip's speed. [url']www.scan.co.uk or www.dabs.com might be worth a look...I am presuming that KirkT's computer holds SDRAM. If you are to upgrade, make sure the clock is correct. I ordered a single 512 stick of SDRAM for 100/133MHz and will not work fully, only regarding it as a 128 stick instead. I should have gotten 2 x 256MB RAM instead, so watch you dont get into a muddle like that if you consider a RAM upgrade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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